"Whom
having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing,
ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."

1
Peter 1:8

I.Introduction

A.What an awesome subject: THEOLOGY - the
study of God! Theology has long been called the queen of the sciences
because it is the very foundation of what mankind can know, and it is the limit
of what mankind can experience. All other sciences are somewhere in between, and
are all relative to how man views and understands God.

B.This lesson will present a brief
study of the one true God, in order for the new believer to personally know Who
it is who created them, Who hears and answers their prayers, and Who it is that
will be the final Judge in the future.

II.How Do We Know God?

The
Bible says in John 1:18, "No
man hath seen God at any time..."
Yet, according to the Bible, God has revealed Himself to mankind in the
following three ways:

A.In His creation.

1.Psalm 19:1-3, tells us that God’s
creation is constantly teaching and instructing every person on this planet that
there is a Creator, and that HE is worthy of worship - not that an idol should
be worshipped.

2.According to Romans 1:18-20, “That
which may be _______ of God is manifest”
- it is not hidden. We don’t know everything about God, but what can be known is revealed because, God
has made sure that it is shown “clearly” to all people by His “_______ of
the world”.

3.Romans 1:20 concludes that people are
“without
_________,” because they simply reject the information God gave them to begin
with, and come up with their own gods to worship in the place of the Creator!

B.In His word. Our authority
for knowing for sure

1.The gospel, the preaching of Jesus Christ, and the revelation of the
mysteries are all made understood by the _________ of the prophets (Rom
16:25,26), which have been “made known to _____ nations!”

2.According to Deuteronomy 29:29, there
are “secret things” that simply belong to _______. But the rest is OURS to
know so that we may DO them as recorded in “all the ___________ of this
law.”

C.In His Son (Heb
1:1-3; John 14:7-9; Matt 11:27)

1.The greatest revelation about God was found in Jesus Christ. A person can
know all about the Bible, and yet never know its Author. God had revealed
Himself in a limited way through His prophets. But finished the job when He came
and spoke for Himself (1 Tim 3:16).

2.Jesus came not only to pay for our sin-debt on the cross, but to reveal
the person of the God who made each of us. Jesus told Philip in John
14:9 that “he that hath
seen me hath seen the __________”

If
God had not revealed Himself, man would not be able to know Him. But God has
demonstrated that He is very interested in man knowing Him intimately! In John
17:3, Jesus says, "and this is life eternal, that
they might know ______ the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."

III.What Can Be Known About God?

We Can Know that God Exists

1.Psalm 19:1-3
states that all of creation declares that an intelligent Being created
everything that there is. There has to have been a Mastermind behind all of this
universe! It is insane to believe it
all came about by mere chance!

2.Only a ______ believes that there is no
God (Ps 14:1). Did you ever notice how
that every religion has a 'god'? Even atheism
(the belief that there is no God) - their 'god' is themselves!

We Can Know that God has a Personality and
Emotions

1.God grieves at sin. (feels remorse, Gen 6:5,6).
The Lord is not “numb.”

2.God gets _______ (1 Kings 11:9), and
yet loves (John 3:16). These are two great
contrasting emotions - and God possess them to the fullest!

3.God can __________ (Prov 1:26), and
even __________ (Zephaniah 3:17; Isa 62:5).
There are some things that really excite God!

4.Our God is a _____________ God (Deut 6:14,15).
Look at the context - it is dealing with idolatry, and how that He is very
jealous of His creation turning a blind eye to His love and work in their lives,
and wasting their worship on idols, which really are satanic demons!

Therefore,
all the emotions that a person experiences, God experiences - only in their
purest form, because He is _______ (Ps 99:9; 1 Pet
1:15,16).

We KnowGod
is not Human or Human-like - He is above His Creation

1.He is Creator and Sustainer of everything. Without Him we can’t exist

a.Gen 1:1
says, "In the beginning God
__________ the heaven and earth." John
1:3 says, "All things were ___________ by
him and without him was not anything made that was made."

c.Colossians 1:17
"And he is before all things,
and by him all things __________" (are held
together)! Jesus is the glue of the universe.

2.He is Eternal, "from everlasting,"
and "to everlasting"
(Ps 90:2)

3.He is all powerful (omnipotent,Matt 28:18), all knowing (omniscient,
Mt 9:3,4), all present (omnipresent,Ps
139:7-10), all at the same time!

God loves His creation - He is the Author
of Love (1 John 4:7-8)

1.Everything that God created, was __________ in His sight (Gen
1:4,10,12,18,21,25,31).

2.God is not willing that any of His creation _____________ (2
Pet 3:9).

3.God showed His love toward us by giving His only _____________________, (John 3:16) who Himself took
our place so that we could go free to heaven by faith in Him! Now, that is real love (1 John 4:10).

God is a Three
Part Being - Three parts of One; not three
different gods!

This
is the concept of the God-head (Tri-unity, or Trinity). Notice how God said in Genesis
1:26, "Let _____ make man in ______ image,
after ______ likeness."
(Same in Isa 6:8). Let's find out who the 'us'
is.

Notice
the Trinity in Jesus' baptism (Matt 3:13-17).

Notice
the Trinity in the Great Commission of Matt 28:19.

The
Trinity is listed in Paul's prayer in 2 Cor 13:14.

Jesus,
the Father and the Holy Ghost are ____ (1 John 5:7).

All
throughout creation, watch for God’s triple signature: like the 3 states of
water (ice, liquid, and vapour), the 3 dimensions, the 3 states of time (past,
present, and future), 3 basic elements of matter (proton, neutron, and
electron), man (1Thes 5:23), and so on.

The
Godhead (the Trinity) then is made up of the
Father, the Word (the Son), and the
Holy Ghost (the Holy Spirit).

1.Let’s Examine God The Father

a.The Father is the authority of the Trinity. Jesus submitted to the
will of the ___________ in the garden of Gethsemane (Mt
26:39).

b.John 1:18
says, ____ man has ever seen God the Father with their mortal eyes. This is
because God is a _____________ (John 4:24).

c.God is referred to as the Father because He first of all is the Father
(the Begetter or Creator) of all things, and secondly because He is the personal
Begetter of your salvation - you become His child by faith, and He becomes your
Father, or “Abba,” (means Daddy, Gal
4:6), who loves you and looks out for you as His child!

d.God the Father’s true name is Jehovah
(Ex 6:1-3) which means the “promise
keeper.” Don’t let the Jehovah Witnesses scare you away from that name. It
truly IS His name!

e.We are told to “call
no man your ________” (Mt
23:8,9) - unless they really ARE your “father” (see Gen
2:24). We do have physical fathers - but only ONE spiritual Father!

f.To see and know Jesus Christ is to see and know the _________ (John
14:6-9). This is a great mystery (Mt 1:23),
but is understood by the fact that Jesus was really God contained in flesh like
you and me (1 Tim 3:16).

2.Let’s Next Examine God The
Son, Jesus Christ

The
name ‘Je-sus’ means, "Jehovah
Saves" (Matt 1:21). His title
"Christ" is the same as "_________"
(John 1:40,41)- the “chosen One”. So, Jesus
was really Jehovah God who had come in sinless flesh.

a.Jesus has always existed. He was in Heaven before coming to earth

1)John 1:1
"In the beginning ______ the
Word and the Word was with God and the
Word was God."
The “Word” is Jesus, and the
Bible says that He was both in the
beginning, and was God Himself (1
John 5:7; John 1:14; 8:56-59; Ex 3:13-15).

2)Jesus shared the glory of God His Father "...before the world ________." (John
17:5). He was not created- He was Creator!

3)How many things were created by Jesus (John
1:3)? ______. So Jesus could not have been created since “without ______, was not
anything made that was made.”

4)God talked with Jesus and the Holy Spirit when He made man in the
beginning (Gen 1:26). God was not talking to
angels, but to Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Note the "Spirit"
in Gen 1:2.

b.Jesus IS God - The "Deity" (the God-ness) of Jesus Christ

1)1 Tim 3:16
says, "_________ was manifest in the flesh,
justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on
in the world, received up into glory."

2)John 1:1
"...the Word was with God, and
the Word was_______."
Jesus was separate yet equal with God (Phil 2:5,6)

3)In Jesus was ALL of God (Col 2:9).
Godhead means trinity.

4)Notice His name in Matt 1:23, "...Emmanuel,
which being interpreted is ___________________."
(See Isaiah 44:6,8!)

5)Heb 1:8
has God the Father talking to His Son, and says, "But
unto the Son he saith, Thy throne O _______..."

6)Jesus
is the manifestation of Jehovah God of
the Old Testament (Ex 6:3).

a)He is called Lord of Lord's in Deut 10:17 and Rev
19:16.

b)Called the Alpha and Omega (the first and the last) in Isa
44:6; 48:12, and Rev 1:17; 22:13.

c)Compare Isa 44:8 with John
20:28; 14:6-9

d)Compare Psa 68:17-18 with Eph
4:8-10.

e)Compare Ex 3:13,14 with Jn
8:56-59, and see Ps 90:1,2.

c.The supernatural Birth of Jesus was foretold 700years before He was born (Isaiah 7:14)!

1)Jesus was born of a ___________ named Mary (Matt
1:23).She was not just a
"young woman" like some of the Bibles say in Isa
7:14. God was doing something very supernatural!

2)Matt 1:18-20
tells us, "for that which is conceived in
her is of the _______________. Jesus was not conceived by Joseph!

d.Jesus' Life on Earth was truly supernatural, and sinless.

1)Luke 2:40
"And the child grew and waxed
______ in _______, filled with _________: and the grace of God was upon Him."

2)Jesus was "___________of
the devil." (Luke
4:1,2), and yet never sinned, because "...in himis
no ________." (1
John 3:5)

3)1 Pet 2:22
says that Jesus "... did no ______..."

4)2 Cor 5:21
tells you that He even "... knew
no ______."

e.Jesus paid man's sin-debt Himself

1)Jesus was crucified, providing forgiveness for our sins.

a)Rom 5:8
"But God commendeth his love
toward us in that while we were yet __________ Christ
_________ for us."

b)2 Cor 5:21
"For _____ (God) hath made
______ (Jesus) to be _______________ who knew no sin; that we might be made the
__________________ of God in him."

c)Only the blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse sin. Heb
9:22 says, "...without
shedding of _______ is no __________," and 1
John 1:7 states,
"...and the blood of ___________________
his Son ______________ us from all sin."

b)After Jesus rose from the grave, He was seen by over ___________________
witnesses. (see 1 Cor 15:3-8)

c)Acts 2:32
"This ______ hath God _______
___, whereof we are all witnesses." Jesus did
NOT stay in the grave!

d)Jesus is now living and is seated at God's right hand. (Heb
10:12), as our ONLY mediator, "For there is one _____ and one _________ between
God and men, the man ________ ________," (1
Tim 2:5)

f.Jesus had _______ and _______ (Mt 12:46-50;
13;55,56; Mk 6:3)

g.Jesus is everything the believer needs (Col
2:9,10; 1 Cor 1:30,31)!

3.God
The Holy Spirit, (the Holy Ghost)

The
Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the
Trinity. We say "person"
because He is as much God as the Father and Jesus Christ. Just as He was active
in creation, the Holy Spirit actively indwells the body of the Christian (1
Cor 6:19), and empowers him for God's service.

a.The Holy Spirit was with God in the beginning. Gen
1:2 states, "...And
the _______ of _____ moved upon the face of the waters."

b.The Holy Spirit is God, just as are the Father, and the Word.

1)1 John 5:7 "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the
Father, the Word, and the _____________,
and these three are ______."

2)The Holy Spirit comes from the Father, and is referred to as a Person. John
15:26 "But when the Comforter
is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the _______ of truth,
which proceedeth from the Father, HE
shall testify of me."

3)It was the Holy Spirit that ________ Jesus from the dead (Rom
8:11; see again Acts 2:32).

c.What the Holy Spirit does in the life of a person:

1)He regenerates. John
3:5 "Jesus
answered, Verily, verily I say unto thee, Except a man be ______ of water and of
the _______, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

2)He indwells the believer the
moment he believes, therefore the believer's body is the Temple of the Holy
Spirit. 1 Cor 6:19 "What?
know ye not that your _____ is the ________ of the Holy Ghost which
is in you…?"

3)He fills the yielding
believer. Eph 5:18 "Be
not drunk with ______ wherein is excess; but be _________ with the Spirit."

4)He seals the believer - once
saved, always saved. Eph 4:30 says, "And grieve
not the Holy Spirit of God whereby ye are _______ unto the day of redemption."

5)He instructs the believer, guiding him or her to maturity (Jn
14:26) through _______ (2Tim 2:15) and
under preaching.

6)He bestows gifts of ability
to the Christian that enable him or her to serve Him effectively.

a)Notice the seven SERVICE gifts of Rom 12:6-8.

i)_____________ - the gift of preaching. It is prophetic because you KNOW
the future from the Bible!

ii)_____________ - the gift of serving

iii)_____________ - the gift of teaching God’s word

iv)_____________ - the gift of encouragement

v)_____________ - the gift of giving above normal, where the Lord gives you
extra money because He knows you will give it away!

vi)_____________ - the gift of management

vii)_____________ - the gift of comfort

Take
a moment and note which one(s) you might have.

b)Notice also the nine SIGN
gifts of 1 Corinthians 12:1,
8-11. Many of these have passed away (1 Cor
13:8-10) because they were special sign
gifts to turn Israel’s heart back to God (Mark
16:15-20) - they were not for all Christians, nor for all time (1
Cor 1:22; 14:22).

i)Word of
__________ - ability to know what people ought to
do (wise actions) in tough situations.

ii)Word of
__________ - the ability to know something that is
hidden in others (Mt 9:4).

iii)Faith
- The ability to believe God for others even when they themselves just can't
believe (Mt 17:20).

iv)________ - The ability to miraculously cure diseases (Mt
10:1), and raise the dead back to life (Mt10:8).

v)Miracles
- a supernatural ability to prove what you are saying is from God (Mark
16:20).

vi)__________ - the ability to foretell the future in addition to what the
Scriptures say.

vii)Discerning
of spirits - the ability to sense demonic activity
in other people (Mt 16:21-23).

ix)Interpretation
of tongues - ability to translate what someone is
saying in a foreign language so others can hear what is being spoken.

Now,
some of these are available to us today in an obviously limited way, but not
like in the first Century.

7)The Holy Spirit plants nine
different fruits in the believer's life (Gal 5:22,23).
These are far more important than any gift of miracles you may wish you had!
Discuss what each fruit means, and develop each to its full maturity in your
life!

8)God in Galatians
5:22,23 says that“The fruit of the Spirit is...”

a)___________ - unconditional love (1 Cor 13:1-8)

b)___________ - unending, always present no matter what

c)___________ - at rest even in a storm (Mk
4:36-40)

d)___________ - endurance, ability to put up with trouble

e)___________ - compassion

f)___________ - ability to do right when hard to do so

g)___________ - ability to always believe God

h)___________ - not drawing attention to yourself

i)___________ - being under control; self-control

IV.How To Know God Better

Know His Son. You
can go to church, be baptized, become head deacon, or even a pastor, and
yet, if you do not know Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour, you
cannot ever know God - you can only fake it (John
3:3)!

Know His Word.
Once you are born again, and know God's Son Jesus Christ, you only know His
saving power. The next step involves studying His word He left for you to
read, love, memorize, and live in (2Tim 2:15)!

Know
His Will for Your Life. A life without purpose
is the most miserable of experiences! When God saved you, He had a plan for
your life. Your task now is to find it, and then live it until your dying
day (Rom 12:1,2 says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of
God, that ye present your bodies a ________ sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto
God, which is your ____________ service.And be not conformed to this world: but be ye
_______________ by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, ______ of God.").
There will be more about this subject in Lesson
Twelve. But briefly, for you to know God’s will for your life
involves first, to live
what you currently know and understand (like, if a person knows that they
need to be saved, then they need to do THAT, not something bigger). If you
won't obey what God has already shown you, why do you think that He will
show you something more? God’s will has a way of finding you
more often than you finding it. But suffice it to say that God’s will is
not some big task for you to do, but a daily life that you should be living
each and every day!